Patricia SHERICK-GRONLUND 

1946 - 2025

Patricia slipped away during a late afternoon nap on March 12, 2025. As was fitting for an actress, she quietly "exited stage left." Born in Great Falls, Montana, on June 27, 1946, after a hair-raising 48-mile drive in a pick-up truck in the middle of the night, she was the fourth child of Bertha and Joseph Sherick and baby sister to Michael, Monda, and Lonnie. Her early years were spent on her grandparents' wheat ranch in Waltham, Montana, until her family moved to Spokane when she was four. She was an actress even then. Great-grandpa Paul called her Rosemary Clooney. After graduating from West Valley High School in 1964, she entered the University of Washington to major in drama.

A few years later, she left the University to travel abroad with her best friend, Chris Bubb. While in Europe, she visited Croatia and met the family of her immigrant grandparents. She also visited her brother, Lonnie, in Germany, where he was stationed during the Vietnam War.

She was tall, blonde, blue-eyed and beautiful - and yes, it's true - blondes have more fun! In later years, she became a beloved aunt to 14 nieces and nephews, and her visits to this clan in Seattle and in Spokane with husband, Will, meant being convulsed with laughter, witnessing dramatic readings, and listening to hilarious stories about their various escapades. One such adventure was a unicycle trip across country in 1972, from San Francisco to Palm Beach County, Florida, where Will's family lived.

Telling about this trip, Will said that Patricia rode carrying a 25-pound rucksack; south along the coast to LA, then east through Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas. Rough desert country where it was difficult to carry enough water following the route of the recent "Easy Rider" film. They were often taken in by the locals and offered rides along the way. Patricia trimmed Will's hair using her pocketknife scissors. He says, "On unicycles we never encountered anyone who wasn't delighted to see us." When people asked if they were being sponsored, they replied that they were just out for fun and adventure. They mostly camped (without a tent), until Patricia was overwhelmed with mosquito bites one night in Louisiana.

Patricia and Will had met on the day before Thanksgiving, 1970, in Harrington's Bar and Grill in San Francisco. She had moved to Sausalito at the urging of her high school buddy, Mike Hall, in 1969, and Will's secretary introduced him to Patricia. She slipped Will her phone number, and the rest is history. They dated and then stayed in touch for the next 15 years, neither of them marrying.

In 1970, she moved into the Union District in San Francisco with Susan Metsak and was later joined by PJ Hardin (Selge), who would become her best friend. She studied and performed at American Conservatory Theater, where she befriended the young Denzel Washington. She was asked to notify Mary Crosby of Bing's death - she had previously dined at his home on the peninsula. She performed with John Boyle in the two-person play at the theater in Bear Valley. It was during this time that her parents came to visit near the Haight/Ashbury on Masonic.

Capturing Patricia's spirit is akin to capturing a rainbow. Her acting achievements arched over her lifetime. She became a member of AFRA (American Federation of Television, Radio and Actors); SAG (Screen Actors Guild); and A&E (Actors Equity). While in the Bay area, she would work with Francis Ford Coppola in Peggy Sue Got Married and Robin Williams in Patch Adams.

In 1978, Patricia moved to New York City, on Central Park West, in a building that began as Charles B. Towns Hospital, where Bill Wilson had his life-changing spiritual experience. It was near John Lennon's former apartment, The Dakota, and not far from where Meryl Streep, Richard Dreyfuss and Dustin Hoffman lived. She began studying and acting with Uta Hagen and appeared in several off-Broadway plays. During this time, she played in "A Christmas Carol" in Louisville, KY. She lived in New York for eight years, while Will continued to live and work in northern California.

At this time, Patricia began appearing in commercials: you may remember her in the Honeycomb cereal ad as Betty the Big Blonde Bomber. (A side note: she roller-skated into the club house and demolished it!) The commercial had a great run and paid the bills for quite a while.

She appeared in a play called "The Night Shift" which later became a movie directed by Ron Howard. She also starred as Lady Bracknell in "The Importance of Being Earnest" and acted the part of a policewoman in a made-for-TV movie about a frog.

Will and Patricia were married on May 25, 1985, in the Spokane Valley at St. Joseph's Church. Mike Hall hosted a wonderful dinner party, dance, and reception at his lake home in Idaho.

After their marriage, they tried to choose between New York and San Francisco, but compromised on LA, and lived in West Hollywood. She joined Pacific Repertory Theater and performed as the Caterpillar and the Red Queen in a production of "Alice in Wonderland." She also played The Gypsy in Tennessee Williams' "Camino Real."

In 1993, they moved to the Glen Park area district of San Francisco, where Will worked in his best friend, Bill Wigert's law firm downtown in the Ferry Building. They had many friends, enjoyed traveling, and life was good. When they retired and moved to Tombstone, Arizona, in 2008, Patricia once again became involved in local theater. After a couple of years, they decided to move to Bisbee, Arizona, an historic old mining town with an active artist colony. They bought a home on a hillside there, where Patricia enjoyed a beautiful view from a deck filled with pots of flowers. Again, she became involved in theater - supporting other people's dreams this time and Will Gronlund stepped up to become a "leading man," and pick up where Patricia left off. She consulted on Bisbee's Obscure production when Will played Pozzo in "Waiting for Godot."

Patricia is survived by her husband, Will; many close friends; her siblings, Monda Van Hollebeke and Lonnie (Cheryl) Sherick; her nieces and nephews: Valarie Gurske, Cathy (Doug Hills) Sherick, Laura Morin, Victoria Sherick (Harwood); Maureen, Jean, Joseph, and David Van Hollebeke, Mark (Amy) Van Hollebeke, and Kathryn (Patrick) Tewson; Scott (Deanna) Sherick, Jennifer (Brian Ostby) Sherick, Brian (Lori) Sherick; and Will's nieces and nephews, Heather Aiello and Lisa Lyman in Florida, and Rick Lyman in Washinton, D.C.; and goddaughter, Destani Wolf. Patricia's parents; her brother, Michael; and niece, Jadie Sherick pre-deceased her.

Eventually, Patricia and her husband, Will, plan to be placed at rest, together, at St. Joseph's Cemetery in Spokane, next to the Church where they were married. A gathering to celebrate her life, in the Bay Area, will be announced at a later date.

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Published by Spokesman-Review on Aug. 3, 2025.